In the field of data transport, Synchronous Optical NETwork (SONET) and Synchronous Digital Hierarchy (SDH) are a set of related standards for synchronous data transmission over fiber optic networks. SONET is the North American version of the standard published by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI). SDH is the international version of the standard published by the International Telecommunications Union (ITU).
SONET/SDH data transport technologies are enabled by SONET/SDH data switching equipment, data transport equipment, interface equipment, etc. each supporting the SONET/SDH transmission protocols. SONET/SDH technology was developed and initially used for high capacity data transport in the core of data transport networks and in particular at the physical Layer 1 (ref. Open Systems Interconnection hierarchy—OSI).
Physical Layer 1 connectivity is implemented hop-by-hop between data ports. Cables are connected physically (Layer 1) to the ports to convey data therethrough. The conveyance of data includes unidirectional and bi-directional data transfers. Each port has a physical data transport capacity.
TABLE 1Data transport capacity hierarchy showingSONET - SDH equivalents.Over-OpticalElectricalLine RatePayload Ratehead RateSDHLevelLevel(Mbps)(Mbps)(Mbps)EquivalentOC-1STS-1 51.840 50.112 1.728—OC-3STS-3 155.520 150.336 5.184STM-1OC-9STS-9 466.560 451.008 15.552STM-3OC-12STS-12 622.080 601.344 20.736STM-4OC-18STS-18 933.120 902.016 31.104STM-6OC-24STS-241244.1601202.688 41.472STM-8OC-36STS-361866.2401804.032 62.208STM-12OC-48STS-482488.3202405.376 82.944STM-16OC-96STS-964976.6404810.752165.888STM-32OC-192STS-1929953.2809621.504331.776STM-64
A group of Layer 1 data transport capacities are defined for SONET/SDH ports. The group of data transport capacities forms a data transport capacity hierarchy known as Optical Carrier Hierarchy (OC) or the Synchronous Transport Mode (STM) capacity hierarchy respectively and is presented in the Table 1. Correspondingly, the ports are referred to as: OC-3/STM-1 ports, OC-48/STM-16 ports, etc. For the remainder of this presentation, reference will only be made to SONET technologies and it is understood to include SDH technologies.
Typically SONET ports are implemented on interface cards. Exemplary configurations include interface cards having: 2 OC-192 ports, 4 OC-48 ports, 8 OC-12 ports, 16 OC-3 ports, etc. SONET ports may also form an integral part of a data network node.
Data network nodes (data switching equipment, data transport equipment, etc.) may have Layer 1 implementations including at least one shelf to receive a plurality of interface cards. The connectivity between a node and an interface card is provided via a slot connector. Slots are keyed shelf recesses into which physical interface cards are inserted. Typically there is a one-to-one correspondence between slots and slot connectors while no implied one-to-one
TABLE 2Exemplary port configurationsPortTypePartitioningOC-192unchannelizednonechannelized 1 × OC-192 channel 4 × OC-48 channels16 × OC-12 channels64 × OC-3 channelsOC-48unchannelizednonechannelized 1 × OC-48 channel 4 × OC-12 channels16 × OC-3 channelsOC-12unchannelizednonechannelized 1 × OC-12 channel 4 × OC-3 channelsOC-3unchannelizednoneetc.correspondence exists between interface cards and slots. An interface card may occupy several slots in a shelf although using only one slot connector.
Typically a variety of interface cards supporting data transport technologies other than SONET may be connected to a node either to provide distribution side connectivity and/or provide bridging across data transport networks.
Recently however, the bandwidth demand for data transport in the edge and/or access portions of data transport networks has increased such that the use of SONET technologies has extended beyond the core of data transport networks for which SONET technologies were initially designed.
The migration of SONET technology beyond the core of data transport networks is paralleled by Packet-over-SONET (POS) technologies which are being developed to enable SONET data network nodes to convey Internet Protocol (IP) packets directly over SONET frames. A SONET port enabling the conveyance of IP data traffic is known as a POS port. SONET data links conveying IP data traffic are know as POS links.
In order to address data service specific bandwidth requirements, it is common for the raw bandwidth of a POS port to be partitioned. An unpartitioned POS port is known as an unchannelized port. The unchannelized configuration of a POS port enables access to the full OC/STM bandwidth thereof. The channelization is a Layer 1 logical bandwidth partitioning enabling a more efficient utilization of the raw bandwidth of a POS port. Table 2 shows exemplary Layer 1 POS port configurations.
OSI Data Link Layer 2 connections are setup to convey data traffic between nodes. At the core, Layer 2 connectivity includes port specifications for both ends of a data connection. A data connection having an allocated bandwidth, represents a data link. The variety of data link configurations include:                POS data links between two channelized POS ports, each end of each POS data link being associated with a channel on a corresponding channelized POS port; and        POS data links between two unchannelized POS ports, each end of each POS data link being associated with a corresponding unchannelized physical POS port.        
Since Layer 1 physical connectivity is made between ports via port connectors, a hybrid type of connectivity including:                POS data links between a corresponding unchannelized POS physical port at one end and a corresponding channel on a channelized POS port at the other end,is enabled at Layer 1 by the use of intermediary devices providing multiplexing and demultiplexing functionality such as: add/drop multiplexers, resilient packet ring nodes, etc.        
The provisioning of data transport over SONET technologies in a data transport network requires the establishment of POS data links. For network core data transport provisioning, the POS data links tend to be relatively few in number and at the same time tend to have large data transport capacities. The relatively small number of POS data links renders a manual provisioning thereof adequate. The complexity of POS data link connectivity presented above is balanced by the relatively small number of POS data links required to be maintained and administered.
The number of POS links necessary to be set up and maintained increases with the migration of SONET technologies beyond the core of data transport networks as IP packet switching technologies are used to deploy end user services. The complexity of the connectivity of POS links therefore introduces a large overhead no longer lending itself to manual provisioning and management thereof.
Further, the configuration physical Layer 1 complexity of POS ports into channelized configurations or unchannelized configurations is relevant for POS data link connectivity at set-up. However, as it pertains to data network administration and management, the actual physical port configuration, once physical and data link connectivity is established, has a lower importance in providing network management solutions.
Prior practice in data transport provisioning includes the management of Time Division Multiplexed (TDM) links and particularly what are known as T1 connections. Correspondingly, T1 ports can also be configured as channelized or unchannelized. The current field practice treats these two types of T1 port configurations as being incompatible for physical Layer 1 interconnection purposes. A distinction is made between Layer 2 data links: those provisioned between unchannelized ports as opposed to those provisioned between channels on channelized ports.
In providing network management solutions, the migration of SONET technologies beyond the core utilizes an increased number of intermediary SONET physical layer data transport devices. A network management workstation providing an administration and management interface to an analyst is cluttered by the multitude of physical layer SONET devices used in provisioning POS data links. Physical layer SONET devices include: physical long haul optical cables, add/drop multiplexers, physical short haul copper links, (optical) interconnects, (optical) switches, aggregation/deaggregation nodes, Wavelength Division Multiplexers (WDM), Dense Wavelength Division Multiplexers (DWDM) etc.
There is a need to solve the above mentioned issues. Concise and comprehensive methods are necessary for provisioning, administering and managing POS data connections.